Area entrepreneurs, web and software developers, designers and others will be pleased to know the Second Annual Startup Weekend Toledo will be held from 5:30 p.m. Friday, Sept. 20, to 9 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 22, at The University of Toledo in the Nitschke Technology Commercialization Complex.
“This event demonstrates that entrepreneurism is alive and well in northwest Ohio and nourished by the UT College of Business and Innovation,” said Dr. Sonny Ariss, professor and chair of the UT Management Department, an organizer, host and one of the judges of the event.
All Startup Weekend events follow the same basic model: Anyone is welcome to pitch a startup idea and receive feedback from peers. Teams form around top ideas, as determined by popular vote, and then it’s a 54-hour frenzy of business model creation, coding, designing and market validation.
The weekend will culminate with presentations in front of local entrepreneurial leaders with another opportunity for critical feedback.
“The inaugural Startup Weekend Toledo was a great success,” Ariss said. “Startup Weekend Toledo enriched the ecosystem of entrepreneurship in northwest Ohio. The business ideas proposed were all excellent ideas, while the participants were very motivated and committed to see their ideas come to fruition.
“The Toledo event is the result of the involvement of many people and organizations, including UT President Lloyd Jacobs, Richard Stansley, UT Innovation Enterprises, INCENU, Rocket Ventures and others,” Ariss noted.
“Furthermore, Startup Weekends are taking place across the United States, so we are part of a global network of passionate leaders and entrepreneurs on a mission to inspire, educate and empower individuals, teams and communities.”
Participants in the Startup Weekend Toledo also will be invited to enter the fourth annual Innovation Enterprises Challenge Business Plan Competition (for UT faculty, staff and students) or the next Pitch & Pour Start-Up Business Plan Competition.
For more information about Startup Weekend Toledo, contact Ariss at sonny.ariss@utoledo.edu.
